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P; A; TOOMEY.

AERIAL ADVERTISING DEVICE.

No. 580,586. Patented Apr. 13, 1897.

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P. A. TOOMEY. AERIAL ADVERTISING DEVICE;

' No. 580,586. Patented Apr. 13, 1897.

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PATRICK A. TOOMEY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO PAUL B. GRANT,

" OF SAME PLACE.

"AERIAL ADVERTISING DEVICE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 580,586, dated April 13, 1897.

Application filed April 1, 1895. Serial No. 544,010. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, PATRICK A. TOOMEY, of Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Aerial Advertising Devices; and I do hereby declare that the following is a'full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates to improvements in aerial advertising, and more specifically to novel means of displaying a sign or signs at a considerable elevation above the earth and surrounding objects.

The object of the invention is to provide simple and comparatively inexpensive means for supporting aloft any desired sign or symbol for advertising or other purposes and at the same time rendering such displayed ob ject conspicuous.

The invention consists in the matters hereinafter described, and more particularly pointed out in the appended claim, and will be readily understood by reference to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a side elevation of an apparatus embodying my invention, and Fig. 2 is a similar view of a modified form of the same. Fig. 3 is a view, on a smaller scale, of an appara' tus embodying my invention, suitably anchored to posts driven into the ground, and showing also the location of the motor and conductor for supplying electric circuit to the lamps.

Referring to said drawings, A A designate two captive balloons, which may be of any desired form, those herein shown being of the usual pear shape. Inasmuch as said balloons and their attachments are alike and will sometimes be used singly or independently of each other, reference will be made to but one in describing the same. The balloon A is provided with the usual netting or harness a, from whicli'is suspended, by means of suitable guys a, a rigid ring a From the ring a is suspended a frame suitable for support ing the sign or symbol. The form and arrangement of this frame will of course be varied to suit the particular case in hand, but

Preferably the length of said bar B will not be materially greater than the horizontal diameter of the balloon-body.

C designates a second and longer bar similar in construction to the bar 13 and suspended from the latter by means of guys 0 c c c (1, so as to hang parallel therewith. Upon this latter bar C is mounted the sign or symbol (in the present instance consisting of a series of relatively large letters D, constructed of thin wood or any other suitable material) and suspended from the bar C by loops d. Means for illuminating the letters D are here in shown as comprising a plurality of incandescent lamps d, attached to or embedded in each letter, and all of which lamps are included in an electric circuit connected with any suitable source of electrical supply on earth, as at D, by means of suitable conductor-wires d (F.

E designates the usual restraining-cable, by

means of which the balloon is limited in its ascent and held captive, while F F indicate guys connected with the opposite ends of the bar C, or, as in the present instance, wherein two balloons are coupled together with. their frames in longitudinal alinement with the outer end of each bar C and led to earth and secured at points some distance apart, as indicated by the oblique direction of said guys,

thereby serving to hold the frame or frames and sign thereon in the desired position.

IVhentwo or more balloons are used together, they will preferably be connected by means of a flexible chain or cable G, extending between the adjacent ends of the bars 0. 5

Obviously the particular arrangement of lamps herein shown is not essential and a greater or less number may be employed, arranged either as shown or otherwise, It will be further obvious that more than a single I00 circuit may be used to supply the lamps and that when a plurality of circuits are used they maybe manipulated to display different parts of the sign either alternately, together, or otherwise, as desired.

In Fig. 2 I have shown a modification in which the letters composing the sign are arranged to depend from the balloon in a vertical instead of a horizontal line. In this case the bar 0 is made shorter and two guys H H are arranged to depend therefrom parallel with each other,between which the individual letters are secured at suitable intervals. The illuminating devices are substantially the same as in the former case.

It will be understood that any suitable swivel arrangement (not shown) may be provided whereby the bar 0 may be secured to the bar B in such manner as to afford a partial rotation thereof, whereby the particular direction to which the face of the sign will point may be governed by means of the guy-ropes.

From the foregoing description it will be obvious that I have provided an exceedingly attractive and novel means of displaying any desired sign in a most conspicuous manner and that such sign may be rendered equally conspicuous at night as by day. The construction is such that it is equally applicable for large or small apparatus and is withal simple, convenient in use, and relatively inexpensive. It will also be understood that the electric current maybe fed from a storage battery carried by the balloon, if desired. This and many other modifications of my invention will readily suggest themselves, and I do not deem it necessary, therefore, to further refer to them herein.

I claim as my invention The combination with a plurality of balloons, each having a frame, comprising a horizontal bar suitably suspended from the balloons, a sign mounted upon said bar of letters or characters, of which each are provided with electric lamps, an electric apparatus remote from the lamps, conductors establishing circuit between said apparatus and said lamps, flexible connections between the adjacent ends of the several sign-holding bars, and divergent guy-ropes connected to said sign-bars and to some fixed object, substantially asdescribed.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention I affix my signature, in presence of two witnesses, at Chicago, Illinois, March 29, 1895.

PATRICK A. TOOMEY.

IVitnesses:

TAYLOR E. BROWN, WILLIAM L. HALL. 

